Heir of Aurelian

Sigefrida sighed as she gazed upon the report on her desk. Though the conspirators against Marcellus had been infiltrated, they had yet to be eliminated. She thought the slaying of Frugi would compel the eastern roman empire to cease its attempts to assassinate Marcellus, but she had just received word that yet another plot was in the mix to remove Marcellus from power.

As the weeks passed, the day that Marcellus married Placidia drew closer, and the girl was getting more hostile to every second. It was clear that she knew she was only a pawn of political marriage, and because of that, she took her frustrations out on Sigefrida with daily scoldings and tantrums.

However, today was the day that Marcellus was supposed to return home from his meeting with her brother, and though she had many questions about how the negotiations went, she was more concerned about having a talk with him about his little fiancee. Thus when Marcellus stepped through the doorway to greet his loving concubine, she was far from pleased to see him, and he immediately took note of that as she spurned his attempt to kiss her.

"What's wrong?"

The hint of worry in the man's tone was enough to make the woman's heart bleed as she bit her lip in anxiety before revealing her thoughts.

"It's about Placidia..."

The worry of a foster brother appeared in Marcellus' olive green eyes as he grabbed hold of Sigefrida's shoulders and shook her in fright.

"Is she okay? What happened?"

Upon seeing that Marcellus was so anxious about the girl's immediate safety, Sigefrida could not help but put those worries aside as she clarified what had happened.

"She's fine, but she has become a bit malevolent towards me. I fear that if you do not set her straight soon, she might lash out at me violently for being your concubine..."

Marcellus could see the worry in Sigefrida's ice-blue eyes, and took in a deep breath as he thought about the issue at length. It was true that he had been so busy with matters of state that he had been neglecting his interpersonal relationships. Placidia had grown fierce in her jealousy, and it was time that Marcellus had a long talk with the young woman. He sighed heavily before nodding his head and informing his lover of the decision he had come to.

"Very well, I will speak with the girl. I don't want this petty jealousy of hers to grow into something more troublesome. Do you know where I can find the girl?"

Sigefrida scoffed when she heard this before speaking her mind.

"She is probably out in the garden like she normally is."

Upon hearing this, Marcellus nodded in agreement before kissing the woman on her forehead. After doing so, he departed, leaving behind a single statement.

"Don't fret, by the time I have concluded talking to the girl, she will know her place..."

After saying this, he rounded the corner and found his way towards the garden where Placidia sat atop a fountain playing with the emerald ring he had given her. There was a sulking expression on her face as she stared into her reflection and sighed heavily. It was not until she spotted Marcellus sneaking up from behind within the pool of water did she finally say something.

"I can see you Marcellus"

Ashamed that he had been caught, Marcellus scratched the back of his neck before approaching the girl normally. He sat by her side, and gazed into the pool along with her before speaking the words on his mind.

"Sigefrida says you have been acting strangely..."

He did not directly accuse her of being malevolent towards his lover, but the pouting expression on her face told him everything he needed to know about the accuracy of Sigefrida's statement. The young woman harrumphed and crossed her arms beneath her bosom as she looked away from Marcellus. She was clearly upset with him. Thus, he tried to approach the problem from another angle.

"Are you perhaps unhappy, Placidia?"

The girl instantly turned around and stared into Marcellus' eyes before commenting on his ludicrous statement.

"Of course I'm unhappy! You're my fiance and yet every night you share a bed with Sigefrida, do you have any idea how that makes me feel?"

Marcellus scoffed as he made a poor attempt at a joke to defuse the tension.

"You know, before Christianity became the dominant religion in the Empire, a man was never expected to find love in the arms of his wife. In fact, such a thing would be considered taboo. Rather, there were slaves and prostitutes to fulfil that role."

The girl gazed at him as if he were an idiot. What did such ancient customs have to do with the Empire today? She could not help but voice her displeasure at his petty justification for his actions.

"So I suppose that makes it okay that you do not love me!"

Marcellus was in a difficult position. He had grown up looking after Placidia as if she were his little sister. There was a significant age gap between the two of them, and by the time they had met, he was already a teenager. It was not like his relationship with Sigefrida, where he developed a crush on the girl the moment he first laid eyes on her. He could only tell the girl the truth.

"I love you, Placidia, just not in the way you expect of me. I never had any siblings, and to me, you are the closest thing to having a sister. After all, we were both raised by the same man, so in a way that does make us siblings. However, it's hard for me to find space in my heart for another woman. I have been in love with Sigefrida since the moment we met as children, and if I'm being honest, were it an option, I would marry her instead of you."

Though Placidia had already known this was the case, it wounded her heart to hear the man she loved say such a thing to her in person. She instantly began to cry as she gazed into the pool of water with a lifeless stare. At this moment, she wished it was her who was killed by Honorius instead of Aeliana. Marcellus realized the pain he had caused the girl and hugged her, despite her best efforts to shove him away.

"Placidia, the moment you become of age we will get married, and though I can't promise that I will eventually fall in love with you, I will promise to be a good husband to you, and a proper father of your children. However, this extreme jealousy of yours towards Sigefrida it is not doing you any favors. If you really love me, you will let go of the bitterness in your heart towards the woman, and be at peace with our relationship."

The young woman continued to cry as she begrudgingly latched onto Marcellus' tunic and poured her tears into it. As for the man who caused these tears, he stroked the girl's dyed hair and held her tightly. In that moment he owed it to her, to at leat give a proper relationship a chance. It would be a pity if she was forced into a loveless marriage, even if such an ideal was only a recent part of Roman history.  After a few moments, he decided to voice these concerns, which instantly turned the girl's attitude around.

"If you promise to cease your hostilities towards Sigefrida, I will keep an open mind, and try to see if I can love you more than just as a little sister."

Placidia wiped the tears from her pretty face as she looked up at Marcellus and questioned his promise.

"You promise?"

Marcellus could only sigh as he nodded his head before agreeing to the girl's request.

"I promise!"

Just as quickly as the tears had come and gone, so too did the woman's emotions shift to that of joy. She quickly latched onto Marcellus' arm and nuzzled her head in his shoulder before making a vow to him.

"I swear I will make you love me, no matter what!"

Marcellus could only smile and chuckle as he heard this before making another poor attempt at a joke.

"I look forward to seeing your attempts."

With that, the couple stayed together in silence for half an hour, gazing into their reflections and thinking about their life choices that led to this point. Marcellus did not know if he could move beyond the idea of Placidia being a sister, and think of her as an actual wife, but he figured for the sake of the stability of his Empire, and his household he might as well give it a shot. After all, by his estimations, he would be a dead man in five years by way of assassination or betrayal, and he might as well enjoy those five years to the best he could.